(humorous opinion article)

After air drone attacks and Iskander missile strikes on Odessa, which happened in February and March 2024, many residents of this legendary and lovely city located on the seashore of the Black Seaplunged into deep reasoning… How to protect this ‘Pearl by the Sea’ better? How to shield its architectural masterpieces, including the Odesa Opera and Ballet Theater, Prymorskyi Boulevard and the Potemkin stairs? How to save the lives of Odessa residents and how to keep doing business, come war or high water? Whom to invite, what to buy, where to live, how to geshafft?

The answer came as a bolt from the sky, “Vive la France! Vive Emmanuel Macron!”

A couple of days ago, Emmanuel Macron said firmly that Europeans should not be “des lâches”(сowards), adding that the possible deployment of the Western troops to Ukraine “ne peut être exclu” (could not be excluded) and his words were “soigneusement réfléchies” (carefully thought out). Later, the French President précised that he was ready to send French troops in case of a serious threat to Kyiv and Odesa regions.

Surely, such words from the French leader cheered up the defenders and dwellers of Odessa Oblast, and some of them started specifying the expected list of French military and humanitarian support.

1.Anti-aircraft and anti-missile defense weapons; the more weapons, the better.

2.Peace-keeping volunteers from the French Foreign Legion headed by their charismatic General Cyrille Youchtchenko, a descendant of Ukrainian Cossacks; the more peace-keepers, the better.

3.CAESARS, 155mm self-propelled howitzers with ammunition; the more Caesars, the better.

4.Champagne Loire Valley wine with lemon-tangy acidity; Red and White Burgundy with delicate raspberry and floral flavors; Bordeaux Red with classic red and black aromas; French Rosé, with fresh, organic rosé flavour, the more ‘grand vin Francais’bottles, the better; if possible, the ‘vrais Odesa vin connoisseurs’would be grateful to taste Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay Maresh, Pinot Noir, Chateau Latour, Marguet Champagne, and Krug Champagne Grande, but surely they don’t insist.

5.The seafood with oysters from Brittany and the North West of France; also if possible…

Even in the time of war, Odesa people don`t lose their sense of humor, saying, “If somebody mess with Odesa-Mama, Mama will bury them.” Who knows, maybe together with Emmanuel Macron this task will be done far faster, who will realize the words of Napoleon in the present-day Russian-Ukrainian war context, “La paix est un mot vide de sens; c’est une paix glorieuse qu`il nous faut.” (“Peace is an empty word; what we need is a glorious peace!”)

With humor or without, I think that it is worth raising our wine-glasses for the brave words of Emmanuel Macron, who knows exactly that “la guerre, c’est la guerre des hommes, et la paix, c`est la guerre des idées.” (“War is the war of men; peace is the war of ideas.”) Not only Odesa, but the whole Ukraine is waiting for the visit of the French President.